


Queen of Cups, Knight of Swords

by AeroCat



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-11-12
Packaged: 2018-04-06 20:57:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4236366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AeroCat/pseuds/AeroCat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sapphire knew her cards wouldn't let her down, but Ruby was a magnet for unpredictability.<br/>**this work will be going through a major overhaul in the near future**</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The first observation that Sapphire made about college was that her dorm-mate was loud.

Not intentionally so, it seemed. But as the short woman - Sapphire couldn't say much here, as she was small herself - moved her things into the dorm, it was as if she couldn't help but make noises and speak about everything she encountered.

A lot of it was grunting and groaning, such as when she tried to barrel her way through the door, carrying a box almost as large as herself in her arms. Sapphire, after several long seconds of watching her new roommate fumble at the door, finally stood and helped her open it wider; and then she was off again, going back down to retrieve more of her things.

Eventually it made more sense for Sapphire to just wait at the entryway, so she sat with a book in hand, grabbing at the handle whenever she heard heard a struggle on the other side.

"Sorry for the wait," the girl choked out from behind a basket of folded laundry as Sapphire opened the door again. "The elevators are jam-packed, so I just took the stairs." As she spoke, she dropped her laundry off in her room.

Sapphire was surprised to hear about the elevators, as the girl had barely broken a sweat - their room was on the third floor. But before she could ask about it, the new arrival was already looking elsewhere.

"Yes! You brought a microwave! I forgot to pack mine, left it by accident..." The girl commented; but before Sapphire could respond, the new arrival’s attention had already left the microwave in question and was now focused on unpacking a box of dishes.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to face Sapphire. When she did it resulted in another sharp inhale and a quiet "woah," neither of which Sapphire missed; as if before that moment, the new student hadn't even looked at her, too caught up in the move.

Sapphire put her book down and smiled through her bangs, not completely averse to the reaction. "Nice to meet you. I don't recall seeing you in the chat we set up online."

"Oh," her new roommate replied, her dark eyes darting around the room. Sapphire watched her hands clench and release a few times as she struggled to find the right words. "Yeah, I just wasn't feeling it," she spoke more to the floor than anything; Sapphire wondered if there was more to it than that, but she didn't really want to ask.

Casting the thought aside, Sapphire shrugged instead. "Me neither, I left right away. The other two started low-key bickering; supposedly they know each other already. It didn't seem worthwhile to stay for it."

"They better not do that when they get here," the girl said as she adjusted the band holding her hair back from her face, pulling it off and trying to tidy it up after all of the lifting she had done. "Kind of don't want to hear people yelling all the time."

Sapphire gave another small shrug; she didn't really care about what any of the roommates did. "It'll work itself out."

"I guess..." Several seconds ticked by, and Sapphire was surprised that the girl didn't resume her unpacking; and even less pleased that she instead tried to continue the conversation. "So, wait. What's your major?"

"Undecided," Sapphire answered, wondering if she'd ever be able to get back to her book. Truth be told, she didn't really know what she wanted to do, and her tarot readings had been especially cryptic as of late. "It doesn't really matter much to me," she said instead, trying to cut the conversation off.

"Oh, yeah, me too...I mean, I've got some ideas, but I'm not sure yet." The roommate stumbled over her words, trying to find the best thing to say.

"Ruby," Sapphire said more than asked, finally revealing her hidden knowledge, "don't you have unpacking to do?"

Ruby's mouth shot open. "How'd you know m-"

Sapphire had been right to assume her dormmate would fall for it, and she tried to keep a straight face to keep her act up. Had Ruby stopped to think about it, or if she had paid any mind to the emails that had been sent, she would have know that all four names had been included within the text. Instead of revealing her hand, she tapped her head in response. "I just know these things," she said, laughing slightly at how riled up Ruby had gotten. "I'm Sapphire, by the way."

As Ruby scrambled to get her things together, Sapphire could see the gears turning in her head: she was trying to figure out how Sapphire knew her name.

She wondered if the girl was really that gullible - even without the emails, their rooms had each of their names posted at the doors. It was hard to miss, but Ruby didn’t seem very observant.

Just as before, Ruby's preparation was needlessly noisy: she seemed to be prone to dropping and bumping into things, as if she didn't pay attention to her surroundings.

Interested in finished her chapter peacefully, Sapphire decided to retreat back to her own room. The rooms were very small, barely fitting a small bed and a desk. It was far from comfortable, but between Ruby's noise and the eventual arrival of the other two dorm-mates, Sapphire knew it was the better choice. She could agree with Ruby on one thing: she didn't want to hear any arguing either, and the others could move in without her help. At that moment, the painfully solid surface at her back and the pages in her hand were far more welcoming.

Sapphire found that she couldn't focus on the words, however, due to Ruby's question ringing in her ears.

What did she want to get out of Beach City University? She was there because she was told to go, and it was easier to agree than to argue with her parents. Her readings had been favorable as well; it just didn't seem like a bad idea at the time. Now, she was beginning to wonder if it had been a mistake.

Rolling over and burying her head in her pillow, she decided a nap was the best way to ward off her doubt.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Sapphire had hoped for dreams. In sleep, her imagination was vivid, and she often kept a journal of noteworthy ones, picking apart her memories to try to find meaning in them.

But just as quickly as she closed her eyes - not entirely true, though it felt this way to her - a shrill voice cut through her, interrupting any visuals that may have formed.

"No! We talked about this before, Amethyst!"

Sapphire lifted her pillow and covered her head with it. It's underside was cold, but did nothing to muffle the noise.

"Uh, I  _just_  used that pan, Pearl. There’s still food in it and everything. Relax, I’ll clean it. Eventually." This was more difficult to hear, since it was spoken at a more reasonably volume. The tone seemed nonchalant in comparison to the shrieking of the other voice.

The walls of the room were evidently paper-thin. Sapphire knew it was Ruby's room that was next to hers, and not the other two; they were on the other side of the dorm. She didn't know if this was a blessing or a curse yet, but at least the two friends were contained at the other end.

The smell of food hit her nose soon after, and Sapphire willed herself to roll out of bed. She left the room, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

"Sapphire!" Ruby greeted her around a mouthful of bacon. "Want some?"

One of the two new additions, another short woman with purple in her hair, looked up from her own meal, which she had just finished. "Hey, you're Sapphire?" She motioned over to the pans on the stove, which contained bacon and eggs respectively. "Help yourself, sleepyhead," she said through light laughter.

Sapphire reached up, trying to tame her obvious bedhead.

A taller woman - the tallest person in the room, anyway - rose from the dorm’s couch and began to fill the plate herself before handing it to Sapphire.

"I swear, Amethyst, we've just been introduced. The least you could do is prepare a plate."

Sapphire sat down at the table, thanking the taller girl for the food. Ruby was across from her, hands kneading nervously through her curls as she glanced at Sapphire's face.

"Did we wake you up? I didn't know you were napping..."

Sapphire shook her head, surprised at how sincere Ruby's question sounded. They had just met, yet she seemed so worried.

" _You_  didn't wake me," she answered softly. "Besides, I've gotten brunch out of it."

Her conscious clear, Ruby resumed annihilating her plate, worry seemingly forgotten.

"Well, Sapphire." The tall woman held out a long, spindly hand, which Sapphire shook lightly. "I'm Pearl, and that's Amethyst." Disapproval heavy in her voice, she pointed to Amethyst, who had just nearly tossed a folding chair across the room in her quest to get to the back of the television.

"That's me!" Amethyst agreed from behind the set, struggling to pull her gaming consoles wires to the backside of it. "We talked for like, two seconds online right? You didn't say much!"

Sapphire didn't have much to say to that, but Amethyst broke the silence right after, her voice echoing from behind the tv.

"So! Are you ready to par-tay!?"

Ruby's arms shot up in response, issuing a loud "Woo!" back towards Amethyst. Pearl groaned.

"There will be no partying, at least not the kind I'm certain you're envisioning."

"Wrong!" Amethyst yelled back. "You lose by vote, P. Ruby's already proven to be awesome, and I'm sure Sapphire's on board too!" Amethyst's face popped up, leaning dangerously on the top of the flat-screen. "Right?"

"Sure," Sapphire answered without enthusiasm, hoping Pearl would understand that she didn't really care.

"Yessss!" Amethyst yelled, a long, drawn-out victory cry.

Pearl threw her hands in the air and walked off with a noise of disgust, entering her room.

"Uh...is she okay?" Ruby asked as Pearl stormed off, looking at Amethyst.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, she’s always like this at first. Tryin’ to be all ‘proper’.” Amethyst replied bitterly. “Eventually she’ll stop being so tense and stuff. Trust me, I’ve known her for like, ever.”

 

***

 

The days passed quickly. Amethyst eventually convinced Pearl to go with her to purchase groceries, and Ruby left to attend a martial arts class. Sapphire politely declined Amethyst’s offer to go with her. She still didn’t know how she felt about her roommates yet, and she choose to listen to her gut feeling to stay out of it for now.

Sapphire took the time to instead fix up her room and shower, in both cases singing softly the whole while. Not knowing her roommates also meant she wasn’t certain about how often she’d be able to do this, so she took full advantage while they were out. It was a fun hobby of hers, and she hoped she’d be able to do it more often. With the way the walls were built, probably not.

Ruby came back first, marked by the noise of the shower starting up and then stopping. Then the grocery group returned, which Sapphire knew through her closed door by Pearl and Amethyst arguing about whether or not eggs belong in the fridge.

Locking her door to prevent interruptions, she grabbed her tarot cards and splayed them across her desk, washing them for a quick shuffle. But before she was able to gather them together, a fast, nervous tap at the door stopped her.

She stood and unlocked the door, slightly perturbed.

“Hey,” Ruby greeted her, now in fresh nightwear and holding a paper in hand, which shook slightly as she spoke. “‘Was just wondering if you wanted to...check out class locations tomorrow? So we know where they are before classes start.”

Sapphire motioned for Ruby to step in while she retrieved her bag, digging through it for the schedule she had tossed haphazardly into it without a thought.

“Okay,” she answered, unable to think of an excuse to say otherwise as she pulled her own schedule out.

“Great!” Ruby's expression of happiness fell the moment she backed up, her arm brushing against a stack of books on Sapphire’s desk; the books tumbled. The movement in turn pushed several of the tarot cards, which fluttered to the ground. Sapphire swore she felt her heart stop. Those were  _her cards_.

The visitor instantly dropped to the ground, scrambling to pick them up. Sapphire bent down more slowly, and as Ruby began to rise back up, the faces of the two became uncomfortably close. Sapphire worried that Ruby could see through her hair, but the vistor's eyes were shining, tears threatening to well from them.

“I’m so sorry.” Her voice was strained, fighting against the pressure building behind her eyes and nose. In her trembling hand she held out a stack of what had fallen. Sapphire accepted it.

“It’s really okay,” she replied, trying not to show that she was upset.

“S-see you tomorrow,” Ruby said, eyes red as she bolted from the room.

Sapphire glanced down at the stack of cards in her hand, and it was The Fool that stared back.


	3. Chapter 3

Flicking the side of the deck with her thumb, Sapphire was surprised to find that it didn't need cleansing. One or two cards falling to the ground usually didn't require it, but such a large number was a different story. Not only that, but Ruby had handled them - roughly, with her large hands undoubtedly sweaty from nerves - and yet it felt fine.

So, the deck was returned to it's box, as opposed to sitting at the window overnight. That single chance reading from the top of the stack was more than enough.

Afterwards, Sapphire killed some time on the internet. It was only as three in the morning approached that she realized it might be too late to be awake, now that classes were two days away. She settled into sleep, and with it came a blank landscape.

She was cold - freezing, but without pain. Though the endless expanse of white frost did not harm her, it hindered her sight; she couldn't see through it as the powder was kicked up relentlessly by the wind. As the wind pulled at her hair and clothing, she tried her best to traverse through it, looking for any means of escape.

Without visibility, the sudden warmth that enveloped her hand startled her.

The shift from the binocular sight of her dreams to her true monocular vision was still something she hadn't adjusted to. The white, murky ceiling of the dorm revealed itself, blurry at first, as did the hot stifling air of the room. She'd have to buy a fan - the dorm's AC didn't work well. She searched for what had woken her, and it seemed to actually have been the knocking at her door; the warm room tricked her into feeling like someone had held her hand, she rationalized. She pushed herself off of the bed and opened it.

"Hi!" Ruby stood at the other side: fully clothed for the day, paper in hand and excitement on her face.

"Hey," Sapphire mumbled back before sitting back down on her bed. She turned her head to view the clock: 8am. Great. "Give me a second, please."

"Oh, right! No problem!"

Eventually, Sapphire was able to dress and clean herself up, carefully adjusting her bangs over her eyes. When she entered the dorm’s main room, she found Ruby nearly pacing in front of the exit.

Sapphire couldn't help but feel it a bit rude, even if she had woken up a little late. They had never set a time to go, and now she was impatient over them leaving?

From the couch Pearl waved, but the annoyance at Ruby's movement was clear on her face. At her side were Amethyst's feet, firmly pushed into Pearl's knee as the stout girl slept with her head on the other arm of the couch. Sapphire mustered a nod and slight hand motion back, surprised to see the two sitting so close - they weren’t getting along very well the day before.

Ruby noticed Sapphire's arrival (greeting her with a "you look great!" of all things), and the two exited the dorms. Sapphire was careful to steer Ruby towards the elevator; she could take the stairs, but certainly didn't want to in the summer heat.

It was morning - and bright because of this, a warm day. As Ruby bounced down the sidewalk, Sapphire covered her phone with her hand, shielding it from the sun in an attempt to see the school's website and the map that came with it.

Sapphire pointed to a tall building, it’s exterior gray and uninviting. "Most of the math classes are held there. You must have one this semester?"

"Yeah, I think," Ruby replied, shuffling through her papers.

The two entered the building, it’s entrance-way sticking as they pushed through. It turned out that they had selected the same class, which meant they could help each other study. Not so lucky was the location: up dingy stairs, tucked into a corner with a busted light and and dusty vending machine.

As they approached, Ruby peered through the classroom door's window, standing on the edge of her toes to do so. Sapphire watched her companion struggle to get a better look of the room, but then felt the hair at the back of her neck stand on end. She turned: she couldn't see as far behind her left side as she used to, and this feeling spooked her. Next to the vending machine was a worn couch, and on that couch sat a wispy girl, her head in her palm and with a hard glare pointed at the two.

Ruby noticed Sapphire’s movement, and turned.

"Oh! Hey,” Ruby started, “didn't see you there...what's with that look?"

Ruby's tone had started with concern, unsure if they were suppose to be poking around the building, but it shifted quickly into a sound Sapphire hadn't heard her speak in before: aggressive and on-edge, matching her now-squared shoulders.

The girl said nothing back, her gaze threatening despite her frame. Her arms were now crossed, knees up at her face and shoes firmly placed on the couch's cushions.Though she did not speak in return, her dark eyes never left Ruby's own glare. In the dim light, her hair - dyed blue, but unlike Sapphire's own, as it was short, and so vivid that nearly glowed fluorescent - made her seem otherworldly.

She was here for a reason. Sapphire couldn't fathom why, but perhaps the woman enjoyed her privacy; this didn't seem like a hallway full of activity, at least not yet, as classes hadn't started.

Now uninterested in the woman’s business, Sapphire began to walk away, but when she didn't hear Ruby's heavy step she stopped.

"Let's go find the rest of the classes," she suggested. She didn't like Ruby's stance, or the look in her eye, and had no intention of watching a fight break out.

"...Right," Ruby said finally, turning and walking with Sapphire.

As they walked to the next class, Sapphire considered asking her new dorm-mate what exactly had happened in the math building; but Ruby seemed to have calmed down, and Sapphire didn’t want to stir trouble back up. Her companion first fell into a jittery state, eyes scanning the campus and fists clenched, but as they proceeded the weather put her in a good mood.

"It's really nice out! Warm."

Sapphire agreed, but then felt an enthusiastic arm sling over her shoulder. The proximity was uncomfortable, and she instinctively smoothed her hair further over her face. Though she had agreed to go searching for classes, Ruby kept reminding her that she barely knew the people she was now expected to live with. And because of this, everything they did had proven to be unpredictable.

“That building was gross,” Ruby spoke, almost nonchalantly, though the energy never left her voice. Sapphire wondered if Ruby was trying to divert her thoughts from the strange anger that she had witnessed moments before. "Too bad we're stuck with a class there, yeah?"

Sapphire found her attention wandering, focused on her phone-map, but the world snapped into place when she heard a question that made her stomach turn.

"Hey...can you see through that hair? It's all in your face again." Ruby asked, her other hand reaching to move her bangs away. Her tone and attention, focused just as much on walking in step, as well as on the campus itself, suggested that the motion was barely anything more than an afterthought.

But as her hand approached Sapphire’s face, she felt the world nearly slow to a stop.


	4. Chapter 4

Sapphire flung her arms in the way, issuing a loud but even-toned "stop!" while she did; a knee-jerk reaction to the movement. She still wasn't comfortable with her prosthetic; years later, it still felt like people noticed how her left eye's movements were less intense than her right's.

But Ruby's martial arts training had caused her to jump to the defensive, hands pulling back and shooting up to her own chest to protect herself.

The result was that the two women looked like they were about to brawl on campus. Sapphire tried to lower her arms, aware that the scene was beginning to draw the attention of those passing by, but she couldn't will herself to drop them. She had entered the school planning to do everything she could to prevent others from seeing her face, and the fear of Ruby asking again froze her.

It was Ruby that moved away first, and quickly - though it had felt like hours to Sapphire, only seconds had ticked by.

"Woah! Sorry, sorry," Ruby mumbled, pulling her arms back as if they had initially moved not of her own accord. She was jittery again, hands running through her hair and nearly pacing in place, obviously upset - at Sapphire? At herself? "I messed up again, why do I keep doing this!" Her eyes glistened from frustration in the light; whatever was bothering her had brought her to tears.

Sapphire could feel her ears grow warm from embarrassment, well aware of the gaze of other students trained on the two. It was as if Ruby couldn't help but make a commotion; even her voice, though small, had a edge that felt like sandpaper, and she kept making small noises as she tried to calm down.

But with all of those stares pointed on the two, Sapphire just wanted it to end, and she blurted out the first thing that came to mind:

"You're being a bit irrational."

She instantly regretted this. Ruby's expression cycled through several forms: it was initially anger, her mouth moving in preparation to spit words back, but the moment she looked at Sapphire directly, it softened into something much weaker.

Realization hit Ruby - the sentence had brought her back, and was suddenly aware of the stares of strangers - and she pulled her arms around herself, as if it would shield her from judgement. As she continued to look at Sapphire, it changed again - to fear.

Ruby rubbed roughly at her tears as she turned and ran, each step hard on the pavement.

 

***

 

Sapphire returned to the dorm. She didn’t care enough to look for class locations ahead of time - it’d all fall into place - and with Ruby gone, any reason for her to be up this early had evaporated.

Though she had opened the door gingerly, she had nothing to worry about: the only person in the dorm was Amethyst. She hadn’t moved from her spot on the couch, though Pearl - her footrest from that morning - was gone.

“Heyyy,” she greeted, raising a hand before resuming her navigation of the Netflix menu. “Where’s Ruby?”

Sapphire’s attempts to ignore the question and go straight to her room were interrupted by a loud groan from Amethyst.

“Ugh, not you too! Is everyone here going to just going to be a constant downer?”

This stopped her walking. “‘Not you too?’” Sapphire repeated in question.

“Yeah, Pearl’s having one of her moments again. No idea where she is.”

Frowning, Sapphire moved to sit next to Amethyst, taking Pearl's previous spot.

“Is this something she does often?”

Amethyst covered her face with her hair, sinking her head deeper into the couch's arm. “Sure is. Ever since Greg showed up…”

She looked indecisively at Sapphire. “I don’t know if I should be telling you this, but Pearl knew someone back in highschool that she really liked. But this guy came along and-”

“Why didn’t she ask her out?” Sapphire interrupted, easily reading between Amethyst’s lines and feeling her own stomach twist into a knot. Her parents had expectations that Sapphire was certain she'd never be able to meet - her own interest in men nonexistent - and the topic of sexuality and romance as a whole made her nervous.

She could never tell who to trust with the matter; she really hoped Amethyst didn’t think poorly of it. "Or was this person not interested in Pearl?"

As Amethyst began her rant, she went back to flipping through shows. "Pearl's in major denial! There isn’t a straight bone in her body - she mentioned it to me, once. She won’t accept it though, and so she never asked her out."

"Bet Rose would have said yes to dating, too. But now Pearl just acts all sad instead of accepting the fact that Rose and Greg are engaged. Wish she’d just get over it.” Amethyst navigated the menus more intently as she spoke, brows furrowed and eyes full of hurt. Sapphire wondered if there was more to the story than she was letting on but did not push.

Eventually a mindless comedy was selected, and the two sat through nearly half an episode in silence.

“Ruby isn't here because I upset her,” Sapphire finally admitted, having given up on Ruby simply coming back to the dorm.

“Not surprised, she seems easy to set off," Amethyst answered, attention still on the television screen.

“She just doesn’t stop moving. And she has no idea what personal space even is…” Sapphire smoothed her bangs down, trying again to forget what happened.

Amethyst shrugged in response. “Probably can’t help it. I don’t think she does that because she wants to, you know? No one's perfect.”

Sapphire thought about how enthusiastic Ruby had been about spending the morning together, and it only furthered her guilt. She knew she should apologize, but where did Ruby go?

Their talk was interrupted by the door opening - Sapphire hoped it was Ruby, but Pearl entered instead. She went immediately to her room, and Sapphire watched Amethyst grimace but otherwise ignore Pearl's arrival.

Sapphire had more than enough at this point. Getting up, she decided to go on a light jog - running always helped clear her thoughts. As she changed into clothing more appropriate for running, she managed to quiet her worry down.

 _Ruby will get over it_ , she reassured herself as she pushed open the building's doors. _People always do._


	5. Chapter 5

The campus was new territory for Sapphire. Hidden between the packs of students existed endless quiet spots - stretches of forests, the sides of buildings less frequented - and these discoveries brought a smile to her face. Her newest find was a walking path that cut through a small set of woods.

Running through it was thrilling. She soon hit that familiar runner's high - it felt like floating, smooth and uninterrupted. The trees at either side of the path zipped by, and she quickly broke into a clearing on the other side.

In that clearing was a bench. Lying on the bench, her workout band pulled over her eyes, was Ruby.

Sapphire stopped, unsure of if it was best to leave or try to wake her. She thought back to her unorthodox tarot reading from the night before - it had been a strange day, and she wondered if she was meant to apologize here. She decided giving it a shot wouldn't hurt: the worst that could happen was Ruby may remain angry with her.

“Ruby?”

Though Sapphire had spoken softly, Ruby jumped up from her position at the noise, yanking her headband upwards and fearfully scanning the area before identifying the source. When she saw it was Sapphire, she sat back down heavily onto the bench, crossing her arms and turning her face away.

"What do you want?" Ruby asked stiffly.

Sapphire could already feel herself bristling at Ruby's tone. This was going to be tough.

"This is a public path, last time I checked." Oof. Sapphire mentally chastised herself as the words escaped her lips: being snide wasn't going to fix this mess.

"Oh! As if I didn't know that! Please don't mind me as you walk on your way then," Ruby responded, her voice loud and full of sarcasm as she waved her arm across the pathway. "No need to let my stupid, uncontrollable self interrupt you!"

Taken aback by Ruby’s willingness to degrade herself, Sapphire said the only thing that she could reply with:

"I never said you were any of those things."

"It's what you want to say though, isn't it? It's what everyone thinks: that I'm embarrassing to be around. Everyone pretends to like me, but no one actually does! They just keep me around to laugh at me and...and this!” Ruby's voice hit a new level of frustration as she became aware of her hands bunching at her hair. She hastily pulled them away from her face before tucking them under her legs, as if attempting to trap them.

Sapphire had envisioned the conversation going a lot of ways, but this was not one of them. It was obvious that whatever was bothering Ruby barely involved her - it had to be much bigger than that. But she couldn't leave Ruby while she was like this, so she lowered herself carefully onto the bench.

"Why do you do things that cause people to laugh at you?"

"Do you think I want to? I get so worked up and start doing stuff without even noticing, and then someone tells me to shut up. But everything gets so loud, so I never even know when I'm talking too much or moving my hands." Ruby shook her head, turning her attention to the trees to avoid looking at Sapphire before continuing to speak:

“And then look at what happens! You’re so cool and pretty, and all I wanted to do when I got to this place was be cool too. I told myself I wouldn't be weird anymore, that I'd be normal - but all I did was make you upset with my messed up problems!”

Sapphire was surprised to hear such a compliment, but she was starting to get the feeling that Ruby lacked a filter for her thoughts. The rest of what her dormmate was telling her, however, sounded awful, and Sapphire now felt her earlier comment warranted a true apology.

“I’m really sorry, Ruby. I was very anxious when everyone was looking our way, and I spoke out of line. In the future, I'll do my best to remember what you've told me.” Sapphire patted Ruby's arm - a single, hesitant motion, unsure of how to comfort someone she barely knew. "Is there anything you can do that helps calm you down when you notice it happening?"

Ruby bit at her lip, looking a little less frazzled as she glanced where Sapphire's touch had been moments before. “Sometimes when stuff is really hard to figure out, it helps if I move around, or talk to myself. That sort of stuff; it makes the noises around me fade out. But people think it’s really weird.”

Nodding to show she understood, Sapphire motioned to her bangs.

“That's what this does. My bangs make me feel comfortable; it helps me get through tough times. Even if they bother some people, I don't care." As she said this Sapphire thought about her parents insisting she cut her hair and her endless refusals. "My hair is mine."

Ruby's mouth opened in worry, everything suddenly coming together for her. "And I tried to...Sapphire! I'm so sorry. No wonder you got mad!”

“No, it's okay. You didn't know."

Ruby's posture suddenly straightened itself as she puffed her chest out, slamming one of her fists into her other hand’s palm. The collision made such a loud sound that Sapphire wondered if it had hurt, but Ruby seemed more than fine - if anything, she looked the happiest that she had all day.

"I won't let anyone try to mess with your hair! If they even think about it, I'll know!"

The idea that Sapphire needed a hair guardian was so absurd that she had to bite her lip to hold back laughter. At the same time, she was glad that someone finally had taken her explanation seriously: Ruby didn't need to know about Sapphire's prosthetic to accept that she wanted her hair in her face. Sapphire liked that.

"Something tells me their thoughts are safe, unless you're a psychic and have been hiding it from us. But thank you. And let me know if anyone hassles you for your mannerisms." Sapphire stood up from the bench and waited for Ruby to do the same. "People shouldn't be rude to you."

The two began walking back to the dorm. Though the path was quiet, it didn't take long for Ruby to break the silence:

“What were you doin’ out here anyway?”

“Jogging.”

“Oh, you run! That’s great, me too. Hey, we could go together sometime?”

Sapphire smiled, unsure if Ruby knew what she was getting herself into. “Sure, but I’m not certain that you could keep up.”

“Yeah I can!

With a challenge in place, Sapphire kicked herself off the ground, legs moving smoothly and swiftly across the pathway. Once she felt her point had been made, she turned around, jogging backwards.

Ruby was running after her, and with Sapphire’s head-start she was a decent distance away. She was undoubtedly in shape, but her legs moved just as the rest of her did: firm, strong and practiced, but with an unpredictable edge. It was not nearly as elegant or quick when compared to Sapphire's own stride, but the power and energy in the step was nearly memorizing.

So caught up in Ruby's legs, Sapphire was unable to react in time to Ruby's warning to "watch out!" and she instead collided, hard, with someone behind her.

Turning around - and then having to move her gaze upward to meet the face of the person she had just hit - Sapphire locked eyes with the tallest, strongest looking woman she had ever seen. She doubted the collision had even moved her an inch. The woman’s dark skin was interrupted in places by light streaks, and she gave Sapphire a sour look before pushing her aside.

"Outta my way, twerp."

Before either Ruby or Sapphire had a chance to react to her shoving someone out of the way, the giant woman was already gone, bypassing the path altogether and jumping into the woods. Wherever she was going, she was in a rush.

 

***

 

When the two made it back inside, they found Pearl pouring herself into writing in a spiral-bound book. Amethyst waved hello from the stove.

"You two looking for some grub? I'm heating up pizza."

"Sure!" Ruby agreed, settling down next to Pearl at the table.

Amethyst peered up from the stove. "How's the nerd-girl prep going Pearl?"

Pearl shook her head. "It's not nerd anything! Classes are approaching, Amethyst. It only makes sense to get my planner in order. You should be doing the same."

"Don't need to, P. Got it all in here." Amethyst tapped the side of her own head.

Once the pizza was ready,  Amethyst passed it out to everyone who was interested. (Pearl politely declined, and did her best to keep her neat pages away from the pizza grease.)  

“So, I’ve already heard some rumors floating around about big campus parties,” Amethyst said between large bites. “You guys interested? Come on, I know you are,” she sung out as she knuckled Pearl lightly on the arm.

“No.” Pearl responded flatly.

Ruby, however, seemed excited by the idea, as Amethyst’s enthusiasm was contagious. As Sapphire slipped away to shower away the grime from running, Ruby stopped her excited party chatter to catch her attention.

“Oh, wait, wait! Sapphire, did you want to run tomorrow morning with me?”

She thought it over, trying to figure out if she could even manage waking up at eight in the morning again.

"Alright. But could we go around nine instead?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to be cleaning up previous chapters over the course of this month. If you've already read them, none of the content will change! Just some of the wording. Sorry for the long wait on this one!

The two did run the next morning – thankfully at a later time than their previous excursion. And though classes began the following day, they ran then as well. Sapphire found the routine was a motivator that helped stave off the temptation of sleeping in: if Ruby could wake at a scheduled time, so could she.

Jogging with another did mean dealing with conversation, and Sapphire learned almost immediately that Ruby was boisterous when comfortable. Oddly quiet until riled up, it was then that her thoughts would spill out almost endlessly - her whole body gripped in the hold of her words. Even when she didn't speak, the warmup and cooldown of their runs were filled with distractions. She'd kick rocks, jump onto ledges and punch the air, all with a gusto that attracted passing eyes.

Sapphire found that this wasn't too bad once she knew to expect it: she'd hang back if Ruby began to draw too much attention from crowds. And when they ran on less-traveled paths, away from the judgement of others, the mannerisms almost energized her.

It was during this second day of running – and first day of classes – that her dormmate began to spout off about home.

“My dad is always working, so usually it's just me at home,” Ruby said from atop a bench. “He's good friends with my coach: he runs the dojo near my place. The school's focus is BJJ and boxing, and I just stay for both. He's been training me since I was little."

Ruby jumped from the bench, landing smoothly and rejoining Sapphire’s side. “It's the only place I could really go besides home,” she added.

As Ruby continued to speak, Sapphire was surprised to hear how drastically Ruby's homelife differed from her own: Ruby lived in a one bedroom apartment, and her father slept in the living room. She knew how to cook and clean, and was praised by her dad for keeping her grades as steady as she could.

Sapphire thought of her own home, with it's multiple floors and expensive furniture, neither of which Ruby had herself. Or of the disappointment in their faces when her grades slipped, partially due to the nearly endless extracurricular activities her parents had put her through. Most of these, Sapphire had tried her best to fail at so that they'd leave her be (she hated failure, but made a game out of how fast she could get her parents to give up on her). After all, if you didn't excel in something, they'd argue, why do it? The exception to this was music: she kept up with singing and piano until her acceptance at BCU.

Overall, the near constant attention was stifling, and Ruby’s life sounded far more peaceful.

“Having a quiet home must be nice,” Sapphire thought aloud. “My parents never let me rest.”

Sapphire realized this might have been the wrong thing to say when Ruby's only response was “Not really.” As her enthusiasm left her body, it drained from her voice as well, and her face showed she was now lost in her own head. The rest of the walk was markedly more awkward, and having just met Ruby, Sapphire didn’t know how to repair it.

After cleaning up and eating lunch, 2pm marked the beginning of Ruby and Sapphire's shared math class.The mention of class was all Ruby seemed to need to become her old self again - her focus was now directly on gathering her bag together and making sure she had pencils and paper.

As before, they navigated the poorly lit hallways – this time full of students – the air between the two more comfortable than when they had walked them a few days before. But as they approached the room a familiar person entered Sapphire’s sight.

The woman from before was seated again on the couch, this time positioned as far away from the classroom's doorway as possible. With her back turned and headphones in, she barely stood out – but it was her brilliant blue hair that gave her away. Sapphire did her best to steer Ruby into the classroom before she noticed: neither of them needed a repeat of the stare-down had happened two days prior.

Once the woman was out of sight, the class went smoothly. Sapphire was surprised to find the professor teaching and handing out work – most of her classes had let out early, as many first days usually go. Though math was always a bit boring to her (even if she'd always made sure to study hard – while the future always held surprises, she could do her part by trying to even out the odds), Ruby seemed to tear through it. After needing help - again - Sapphire was grateful when Ruby cheerfully suggested that they study together – her energy was a bit hard to follow, but in the end she was able to explain things to Sapphire in a way that clicked.

 

***

 

It was only a few days later that the same math class had nearly overloaded her with assignments. Sapphire felt frustration over this - it was only an intro course, after all, so why was the professor being so difficult?

“Hey!” Sapphire’s concentration broke as a familiar voice called from behind at her door. She stood to open it, and was greeted with Ruby, math book in hand.

“I was about to do my homework, but then I remembered you saying you needed help. Well,” Ruby thrust her books outward as she spoke, presenting them to Sapphire. “Don't worry, I'm here to solve your problems!”

A small, clipped laugh escaped Sapphire's throat: the pun was groan-worthy, but Ruby was standing there tall and bright, and with an offer of help as well – now wasn't the time to discourage her.

Ruby pulled in a folding chair from the main room and positioned it as close to the desk as she could.

“Back in highschool, my teachers hated me,” Ruby explained when Sapphire spoke about her dislike of math and had asked what her new tutor found so appealing about the subject. “People picked on me a lot, and I tried to protect myself, so they all thought I was a troublemaker too. But my math teacher thought I was an okay kid, so I guess I learned a lot in that class.”

This continued every day. Just as on their walks, Ruby was loud and embarrassing to study with- but her honesty was refreshing, as it meant Sapphire didn't have to try to read her every action for lies. And Sapphire found that she enjoyed her attention. Because Ruby’s visits felt enjoyable instead of intrusive, she didn’t mind allowing her to enter her room. This routine continued up until the first Friday, when the situation changed sligh

As Ruby gathered her books together, she looked at the desk.

“Are you going to do the thing with the cards again?"

Sapphire stopped, her hands having already begun to reach out for her deck.

“...Yes,” she answered hesitantly.

“How does it work?” Ruby leaned in. “Can I watch?”

When Sapphire didn’t reply right away, Ruby again got up from her half-seated position. “Forget I said any-”

“No, wait,” Sapphire said as she held up her hand. “Give me a moment to think about this.”

Ruby had been a great help with studying so far, and she was also a friendly running partner (as well as one of the few who could match Sapphire’s energy.) Having an interest in something Sapphire was doing was a good sign, she tried to reason with herself, as it meant Ruby might have begun considering her a friend. Because of this, Sapphire wanted Ruby to know she was interested in spending time with her in return.

The trouble was how _personal_ the readings were. Other things she dabbled in, palm reading, mostly, along with interpreting dreams - these things she usually did for others without issue. Tarot, she kept only for her.

Once a decision was reached, she spoke:

"I can show you the cards, but please be careful with them.”

Ruby accepted the bundle of cards as if they were a newborn child, gently holding them in her wide palms. Sapphire had never seen the woman move so deliberately before. As her eyes scanned slowly through the stack, every card was handled with care. She then piled the cards back together and flipped the top one, imitating what she had seen Sapphire do out of the corner of her eyes.

Knight of Swords, reversed. Sapphire inwardly wondered if this was a warning for herself, courtesy of her cards, or a simple reading of Ruby’s nature. She did seem impulsive and scattered, but Sapphire couldn’t deny that it drew her in. A moment later, Ruby flipped it upright to admire the artwork.

“Looks cool,” she commented.

Sapphire nodded in agreement before retrieving the deck. Clearing her desk, Ruby moved her chair closer as Sapphire began to launch into an explanation. Rather than elaborate on every small detail, she simply did her nightly reading, detailing the cards whose artwork made Ruby’s eyes brighten and leaving out her own more personal readings. Years of reading had resulted in Sapphire’s methods becoming atypical at times - but they were her own and rarely let her down.

Ruby's sight remained trained on the cards the entire time, but as Sapphire began to clean up her audience of one began to reach out to help. Sapphire felt a sharp pang in her chest as Ruby began to grab at stray cards. At first she thought it was the familiar feeling of fear – her cards shouldn't be handled by others – but she then realized it was their proximity.

They were close enough that Sapphire could see Ruby’s eyelashes. As the reading had continued, the woman must have inched closer, trying to get a better look at the desk. And it had put Ruby in a good mood as well - that wide smile was proving to be nearly contagious. With a disregard for Sapphire’s personal space, Ruby’s arm crossed over to reach the box for the tarot cards, and the moving muscle in her bare shoulder caught Sapphire's attention.

Sapphire felt her face warm as she realized what was happening, and then quickly became angry with herself.

_Oh, absolutely not._

She had known Ruby for a week. And even though she had endearing traits – Sapphire scolded herself for even considering them – she also had many qualities that were difficult to handle. And either way, it was ridiculous to even consider-

“Sapphire, you there?” Sapphire's attention snapped back to reality, and she was greeted with another one of Ruby's earnest smiles. She pulled together a neutral expression and nodded yes - Ruby didn’t seem fully content with this response, but she didn’t press further.

Reading completed, the two got up for food. They were greeted unexpectedly by Amethyst, who stood at Sapphire’s doorway, fist up to knock. She started talking the moment the door opened, leaving Ruby and Sapphire nearly squished together in the doorway.

“Guys! Guess what!” She motioned to the laptop balanced precariously in one arm. “This jerk I know is holding a party at some fancy house. Guess what we're doing tomorrow?”


End file.
